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Hackathon planning
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Master these hackathon fundamentals to help you get ready to plan a successful event.
This article covers what modern-day hackathons really are. At Devpost, we've powered hackathons since 2009 and work with organizations running events at every scale, from 50-person internal hackathons to global developer competitions with thousands of participants.
If you're trying to understand what a hackathon is, evaluate whether to run one, or plan your first event, this article covers the full picture: the definition, how hackathons work, the types available to you, and what makes them successful.
Hackathons have also become one of the primary mechanisms for driving AI adoption. From developer communities building AI-powered applications to enterprise teams running internal innovation sprints, organizations are using hackathons to turn AI investment into working solutions and to identify who in their ecosystem is ready to build.
What is a hackathon? A hackathon is a time-limited competitive event where participants build software solutions to a defined challenge, then submit their work for judging. Events typically run from 24 hours to 8 weeks, depending on the format.
Hackathon meaning: The word combines "hack" (like a "life hack": clever, exploratory problem-solving) and "marathon," reflecting the focused effort over a compressed timeline.
How hackathons work: In a nutshell, hackathons work by setting a challenge, then teams work against a fixed deadline to solve that challenge by building a prototype or solution. At the end, participants submit their projects; a panel of judges evaluates submissions against defined criteria and awards prizes to top entries.
Why companies run them: To grow developer communities, generate developer-built solutions, accelerate AI adoption, foster internal innovation, and identify emerging use cases.
A hackathon is a skill-based competitive event where participants are asked to solve a problem and build solutions in a relatively short time frame. Most hackathons focus on software (mobile apps, APIs, integrations, AI-powered tools), though some extend to hardware prototypes, product design, or business model challenges.
The word "hackathon" is a portmanteau of "hack" and "marathon." In this context, "hack" is used the way it's used in "life hack": a clever, exploratory approach to a problem. The marathon element reflects the sustained, focused work over a compressed timeline. A hackathon is a structured sprint where participants solve a set challenge and build a working prototype within a fixed time limit.
Hackathons are often hosted by companies, schools, and other organizations as a way to challenge participants to think creatively, inspire innovation, and generate project submissions. Participants form teams and work on projects using programming languages and other tools to create mobile apps, websites, or other software solutions.
At the end of a hackathon, project entries are reviewed by a panel of judges and the winner is awarded a prize.
The first hackathon is widely credited to a group of OpenBSD developers who gathered on June 4, 1999, in Calgary, Canada. They are often credited with coining the term "hackathon," combining "hack" (used in the sense of skilled programmer, not cybercriminal) and "marathon."
Shortly after, Sun Microsystems ran a similar event at its JavaOne Conference where developers were challenged to create a program for a new device. The quality of output produced in such a short time made the format compelling, and hackathons grew steadily from there.
Today, hackathons are run by many of the world's largest companies (Google, Microsoft, Meta, and hundreds of others) as well as universities, government agencies, and startups. The format has also split into distinct types, each with different goals and audiences.
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Hackathons can be run for the public, for your employees, or for your customers. The right choice depends on what you're trying to accomplish and who you want to engage. Here's how each type works.
Public hackathons (sometimes called external hackathons) are open to anyone: developers, designers, students, and technologists from any organization or background. On Devpost, public hackathons draw participants from around the world across every skill level and specialty.
Benefits of running public hackathons:
Internal hackathons are run by organizations for their own employees. Participants are challenged to solve specific business problems, explore new technologies, or generate ideas that leadership can act on. Internal hackathons are not limited to engineers, especially now that generative AI has lowered the barrier to building working prototypes without deep coding expertise.
Benefits of running internal hackathons:
Related: 8 types of internal hackathons to drive innovation within your organization
Private customer hackathons bring together your customer’s teams with yours to build solutions to their business challenges. Your team can directly help your customers learn how to apply your product to their company’s specific needs.
Companies use these events to deepen product engagement with select customer groups, generate highly specific use cases, and accelerate hands-on adoption.
Benefits of running private customer hackathons:
Related: See how SAP drives customer engagement with private customer hackathons
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The general structure of a hackathon is consistent: set a challenge, let teams work toward a solution, collect submissions, and judge entries. What varies is the format: whether you run it virtually, in-person, or as a hybrid.
In virtual hackathons, the entire event runs remotely through platforms like Devpost and Devpost for Teams. Running your hackathon virtually removes geographic barriers and makes your event accessible to participants worldwide.
Virtual hackathons typically run six to eight weeks. This gives participants, including skilled professionals, the time to iterate and build more sophisticated projects. As an organizer, these events are often simpler to run than in-person events because there are fewer venue-related logistics (venue, catering, etc.) to plan.
Related: 7 tips to make your next virtual hackathon a success
In-person hackathons bring all participants together in a single location. These work well for small, community-based public events, university hackathons, and internal company events where the goal is face-to-face collaboration and team building.
In-person internal hackathons are a great option for companies looking to encourage collaboration and give employees an opportunity to network in person.
Hackathon platforms like Devpost and Devpost for Teams help streamline hackathon management during in-person public and private events. These platforms help organizers save time by centralizing hackathon details, project submissions, and judging.
Related: Best practices for in-person hackathon managers [Free Guide]
Hybrid hackathons combine virtual and in-person participation. Some participants join remotely while others work from a central venue. This format is useful when you want the energy of an in-person hub but don't want to limit participation by geography. It requires more coordination than either pure format, but gives organizers the flexibility to serve a broader audience.
The hackathons that produce the best results share a few structural elements:
The theme you choose shapes who participates and what gets built. Here are three of the most consistently high-performing hackathon categories on Devpost.
AI hackathons are the fastest-growing category on Devpost. In an AI hackathon or innovation hackathon, participants build solutions using artificial intelligence and machine learning, including LLM-powered applications, computer vision tools, and agentic workflows. These events are effective for both public developer communities and internal teams: externally, they generate AI-powered solutions built on your platform; internally, they accelerate AI adoption and surface employees who are furthest ahead on the curve.
AI has also changed how hackathons work more broadly. Generative AI tools have lowered the barrier to building functional prototypes, which means a wider range of participants can produce meaningful submissions.
Blockchain hackathons give participants an opportunity to build decentralized applications. These hackathons typically focus on tools like Layer 1 blockchain protocols, decentralized data, smart contracts, and more. You can run blockchain hackathons to add DApps to your ecosystems, test your protocols and documentation, get feedback, and find applicants for grant programs.
While these events tend to be more technical, organizers are encouraged to welcome non-coders to participate by providing resources, forums, and workshops to help them get started.
See this blockchain hackathon example on Devpost: TRON Grand Hackathon - HackaTRON Season 7
Beginner-friendly hackathons are designed to welcome participants new to coding or competitive development. They tend to attract large, diverse participant pools, which makes them effective for community growth goals. As more people tend to join these types of hackathons, they’re a great way to grow your community and generate creative project submissions. Organizers can help participants get started by providing learning resources, office hours, clear documentation, sample project ideas, and support to help get new builders over the hurdle of joining a hackathon for the first time.
See this beginner-friendly hackathon example on Devpost: The Slack Agent Builder Challenge
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Ready to start planning your hackathon? You’ve got this! Whether you’re looking to connect with your customers or your colleagues through hackathons, we can help make sure your next event is a success.
